CAR NOTES.

Autos

September 12, 2002|By Car notes are compiled from the notebooks of Jim Mateja and Rick Popely, and from Tribune news services.

- The base price of the redesigned 2003 Honda Accord is $15,800 for a DX sedan with manual transmission, $300 more than the 2002 model. New standard features include anti-lock brakes, a tilt and telescoping steering wheel and power windows. The EX V-6 coupe is the most-expensive model, starting at $25,900, $600 more than last year's. Prices do not include the destination charge, which is unchanged at $460.

FYI

- Toyota Motor Corp. is considering setting up a fifth assembly plant in North America if sales continue to rise. Toyota sales in North America are up about 5 percent this year from a year earlier, says spokesman Shigeru Hayakawa. Toyota is targeting selling 2 million vehicles in North America by 2003 or 2004. But if the pace continues, North America sales may hit that this year. The company has been considering the need for a fifth assembly plant in the region, but no decision has been made, Hayakawa says. Toyota has assembly plants in California, Indiana, Kentucky and Ontario.

Calendar

- The 25th Annual Lake Geneva Classic Car Rally, Sept. 28 and 29 in Lake Geneva, Wis., will include car, boat and air shows, children's events and a poker run. The event, to benefit the American Cancer Society, was founded in 1978 in memory of Corrine Kreissl. Registration for the poker run costs $10 per hand with a two-hand minimum. Call 262-248-2764 or visit www.classiccarrally.net.